Shettima says Tax Reforms Will Boost Investment Without Frustrating Nigerians

Vice President Kashim Shet­tima, on Saturday, said the tax reforms undertaken by the Bola Tinubu administration were not aimed to frustrate Nigeri­ans, but to sustain the country’s investment friendliness.

Shettima, represented by his Special Adviser on Gener­al Duties, Aliyu Umar, spoke at the close-out retreat of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee held at the Transcorp Hilton, Abuja.

Shettima’s spokesperson, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement titled, ‘Our Tax Reforms Initiated For Over­all Benefits of Nigerians – VP Shettima.’

He argued that contrary to speculations in some quarters, “We are not here to frustrate any sector of our economy but to create an administrative sys­tem that ensures the benefits of a thriving tax system for all our citizens.”

His comments followed con­troversies surrounding the in­troduction of the cybersecurity levy in Nigeria.

The levy, which involves a 0.5% charge on all electronic transactions, was mandated by the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Amendment Act 2024.

It also comes amidst ongoing reforms by the Taiwo Oyedele-led Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee inaugurated last August.

On October 24, 2023, Oyedele presented a 30-day Quick Win report to President Tinubu, telling State House Correspon­dents that the Committee rec­ommended merging over 200 taxes being paid by Nigerian businesses into 10.

He argued that multiple tax­ation had shrunk the Federal Government’s internal revenue pool rather than increasing it, adding that only 10 taxes gener­ate 96 per cent of revenues.

VP Shettima explained the policy thrust of the adminis­tration’s tax reforms, pointing out that the dynamics of the na­tion’s fiscal landscape prompt­ed the Tinubu administration to pause and reconsider the direction it was going.

“Our aim remains the revit­alisation of revenue generation in Nigeria while sustaining an investment-friendly and glob­ally competitive business envi­ronment,” he noted.

While expressing confidence in the ability of the committee to deliver on the mandate, the VP emphasized the significance of the task ahead, noting that “we are gathered today because we are transitioning from the phase of the proposal in the operations of this committee’s work to the phase of implemen­tation.

“I am confident that both the federal and state governments stand ready to ensure the effec­tive implementation of your reform proposals, and we shall provide the institutional frame­work to guarantee the adoption of the consensuses of this com­mittee, aligning them with our economic agenda,” he added.